Wind fits perfectly in Trump’s plan for US

Forget the rhetoric. The wind sector is helping to ‘Make America Great Again’, for real.

The American Wind Energy Association last Thursday released its 2016 ‘US Wind Industry Annual Market Report’, which showed that construction activity remained strong in US wind last year. This contributed to a growing need for personnel, and meant that the industry added nearly 15,000 jobs in 2016. That brings total US wind industry jobs to 102,500.

The report has also showed that the continued growth of wind has fuelledthe domestic manufacturing sector, with over 500 factories across 41 states producing components for the US wind industry in 2016. Wind-related manufacturing jobs grew 17% in 2016.

These figures are undoubtedly signs that the wind sector in the US is in good shape and has potential to keep growing, even under wind-sceptic President Trump.

This job growth should not surprise us as it is part of a trend involving the US economy as a whole. At the moment, the US economy has one of the strongest and most solid labour market globally. In March, the unemployment rate fell from 4.7% in February to just 4.5%, the lowest since May 2007.

The US manufacturing sector is doing very well too. According to a survey of the Institute for Supply Management, the sector has kept growing since autumn, with manufacturing jobs rising to the highest level in six years. In addition, 17 of the 18 industries tracked by the institute said this month they are in expansion mode. The last time that happened was almost three years ago.

The wind sector mirrors, and is a beneficiary of, what is happening to the US economy more widely.

And a growing manufacturing sector would make the country less dependent on importing goods from abroad and would also help to create more jobs, keeping the economy healthy and making, hence, America great again. The wind sector perfectly fits into Trump’s election pledge – whether or not he wants to admit it.